Comparison

Orbit vs Apple Notes

Apple Notes is the fast, free place to jot things down; Orbit is what you reach for when you want to ask your notes questions later and see the patterns across them.

Apple Notes is excellent at what it's built for: capturing a quick list, a photo, or a scanned document, everywhere your Apple devices go, for free. If you mostly need somewhere to store notes and find them again by keyword, it's hard to beat.

Orbit starts from a different question — not "where did I put that note?" but "what have I been thinking about?" You dump every thought without filing any of it, then later ask Orbit in plain language and it reads back across everything you've written, answering in your own words and citing the days it came from.

Orbit is free on the App Store — get it for iPhone.

At a glanceApple NotesOrbit
Core ideaA fast place to jot and store notesA place to think out loud and query later
How you organizeFolders, pins, tags, and searchNothing — you never file or tag
Finding things laterKeyword search across your notesAsk in plain language; get an answer in your words, with the days it came from (3 free asks a month, unlimited on Pro)
Patterns over timeYou notice them yourselfSurfaced for you as recurring themes and decisions (full pattern history with Orbit Pro)
Reminders / streaks—None, by design
PrivacyPrivate to your Apple accountPrivate; never sold or used to train models
PlatformsApple devices and the webiPhone (iOS 17+), more on the roadmap
PriceFree with your Apple devicesFree to download; Orbit Pro $4.99/mo or $49.99/yr (US pricing)

Orbit Pro prices shown are US pricing — your local price shows in the app.

When to use which

Use Apple Notes

Reach for Apple Notes when you want a quick, free scratchpad that's already on every Apple device — shopping lists, a scanned form, a photo you'll share, a note you'll act on today.

Use Orbit

Reach for Orbit when the writing is thinking you'll want to revisit — half-formed ideas, the same worry three weeks running, decisions you keep circling — and you'd rather ask a question later than dig through folders.

Questions, answered.

Can Apple Notes search across everything like Orbit?

Apple Notes has keyword search, which finds notes that contain the words you type. Orbit answers questions instead — you ask in plain language and it reads across everything you've written, replies in your own words, and cites the days the answer came from.

Do I have to move my notes out of Apple Notes?

No. Many people keep Apple Notes for quick lists and shared notes and use Orbit for the thinking they want to revisit and question later. They're good at different jobs.

Is Orbit private like Apple Notes?

Yes. Your writing stays yours — never a feed, never sold, and never used to train anyone's model. You can export everything or delete all of it at any time.

See it for yourself.

Orbit is free to download on the App Store. Write messy — find the patterns later.

Get Orbit on the App Store

Or see all comparisons · what a thinking database is · pricing